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The Beatles on the Roof of Apple Corps Building.
The Beatles' rooftop concert was the final public performance of the English rock band the Beatles. On 30 January 1969, the band, with keyboardist Billy Preston, surprised a central London office and fashion district with an impromptu concert from the roof of the headquarters of the band's multimedia corporation Apple Corps at 3 Savile Row. In a 42-minute set, the Beatles played nine takes of five songs before the Metropolitan Police asked them to reduce the volume. Footage from the performance was used in the 1970 documentary film Let It Be. What Happened Although the concert was unannounced, the Beatles had planned on performing live during their Get Back sessions earlier in January. According to author Mark Lewisohn, it is uncertain who had the idea for a rooftop concert, but the suggestion was conceived just days before the actual event. George Harrison brought in keyboardist Billy Preston as an additional musician, in the hope that a talented outside observer would encourage the band to be tight and focused. In Preston's recollection, the idea to perform on the Apple Corps rooftop was John Lennon's. Ringo Starr remembered: In his autobiography Sound Man, recording engineer Glyn Johns claims the idea for the concert was his. Former Apple Records Ken Mansfield believed it most likely that the idea came from director Michael Lindsay-Hogg. The audio was recorded onto two eight-track recorders in the basement studio at Apple by engineer Alan Parsons. Film director Michael Lindsay-Hogg, working on what would become Let It Be, brought in a camera crew to capture several angles of the performance, including reactions from people on the street. When the Beatles first started playing, there was some confusion from spectators watching five storeys below, many of whom were on their lunch break. As the news of the event spread, crowds of onlookers began to congregate in the streets and on the roofs of local buildings. While most responded positively to the concert, the Metropolitan Police grew concerned about noise and traffic issues. Apple employees initially refused to let police inside, but reconsidered when threatened with arrest. As police ascended to the roof, the Beatles realised that the concert would eventually be shut down, but continued to play for several more minutes. Paul McCartney improvised the lyrics of his song "Get Back" to reflect the situation: "You've been playing on the roofs again, and you know your Momma doesn't like it, she's gonna have you arrested!" The concert came to an end with the conclusion of "Get Back", with Lennon saying, "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves and I hope we've passed the audition." Set list The rooftop concert consisted of nine takes of five Beatles songs: three takes of "Get Back"; two takes each of "Don't Let Me Down" and "I've Got a Feeling"; and one take each of "One After 909" and "Dig a Pony". The set was performed in the following order: * "Get Back" (take one) * "Get Back" (take two) * "Don't Let Me Down" (take one) * "I've Got a Feeling" (take one) * "One After 909" * "Dig a Pony" * "I've Got a Feeling" (take two) * "Don't Let Me Down" (take two) * "Get Back" (take three) The first performance of "I've Got a Feeling" and the recordings of "One After 909" and "Dig a Pony" were later used for the album Let It Be. In 1996, a "rooftop" version of "Get Back", which was the last song of the Beatles' final live performance, was included in Anthology 3. An edit of the two takes of "Don't Let Me Down" was included on Let It Be... Naked. There was also a brief jam of "God Save the Queen" while sound engineer Parsons changed tapes. Category:1960s Category:Greatest Moments in Music History Category:Events